System and method for facilitating continous quality improvement

Abstract

A quality improvement system and associated methods are contemplated. The quality improvement system is configured to collect and route ideas from and between users of the system. The routing of ideas may be based on a user hierarchy that is adaptable and scalable to support any organization desiring to utilize the contemplated system. The system may also be configured to assist users in evaluating and implementing collected ideas and to report on the impact of any implemented ideas. To facilitate and encourage the submission of ideas a process of challenging employees to provide ideas may also be provided. The process may be used by management to solicit ideas from employees and may be an incentive-based process.

1 . A system for processing ideas of opportunities for improvement comprising:
 a network receiving an opportunity for improvement idea and related data of the identification and a description of the opportunity for improvement idea from the idea originator;   the system receives a group generated hierarchy comprising:
 organizational person designations; 
 departments; 
 work groups; 
 leaders of departments; 
 and users; 
   the system defines an idea notification group comprising the idea originator and all responsible parties based on the hierarchy;   the system receives an indication of a responsible party based on the hierarchy and the idea notification group is sent a notification;   the system receives acceptance of responsibility for the opportunity for improvement idea and the system updates the idea notification group with a notification;   the system ends the opportunity for improvement idea upon receiving completion or deletion of the opportunity for improvement idea and the idea notification group is sent notification of completion or deletion.   
     
     
         2 . The system in  claim 1  wherein the organizational hierarchy has persons in multiple departments. 
     
     
         3 . The system in  claim 1  wherein the organizational hierarchy is manipulated by the idea originator. 
     
     
         4 . The system in  claim 1  wherein the organizational hierarchy is updated to reflect organizational changes to personnel. 
     
     
         5 . The system in  claim 1  wherein the responsible party is chosen by the idea originator. 
     
     
         6 . The system in  claim 1  wherein the responsible party is chosen by business rules. 
     
     
         7 . The system in  claim 1  wherein the responsible party is more than 1 person. 
     
     
         8 . The system in  claim 1  wherein the responsible party can accept, delete, or assign the opportunity for improvement idea. 
     
     
         9 . The system in  claim 8  wherein the network receives assignment from the responsible party to route the opportunity for improvement idea to a new responsible party. 
     
     
         10 . The system in  claim 8  wherein the new responsible party is selected by the system from the hierarchy as the default responsible party. 
     
     
         11 . The system in  claim 8  wherein the new responsible party is selected by the previous responsible party. 
     
     
         12 . The system in  claim 1  wherein the network receives sends the opportunity for improvement idea to an alternative responsible party after a predetermined amount of time has elapsed and there has been no action by the responsible party and the idea notification group is sent notification of the new alternative responsible party. 
     
     
         13 . The system in  claim 1  wherein the completion of the opportunity of improvement idea generates a report containing identification of the idea originator, the facilitators of the idea, and estimations on financial impact of execution of the opportunity of improvement idea. 
     
     
         14 . A system for processing ideas of opportunities for improvement comprising:
 a network receiving an opportunity for improvement idea and related data of the description of the opportunity for improvement idea and the identification of the opportunity for improvement idea originator;   the system receives a user generated group hierarchy description;   the system defines an idea notification group comprising the idea originator and responsible parties based on the hierarchy description;   the system receives an indication of a responsible party;   the system sends notification of the opportunity for improvement idea to the idea notification group;   the system receives an acceptance from a member of the responsible party for the opportunity for improvement idea and the system sends notification to the idea notification group;   the system receives a checklist comprising individual tasks created by the acceptance member of the responsible party wherein the tasks are created, allocated and assigned to individual secondary responsible parties and the system sends notification to the idea notification group and the secondary responsible parties;
 the system receives acceptance from secondary responsible party members for each individual task and sends notification to the idea notification group; 
 the system receives completion from the secondary responsible party members for each individual task and sends notification to the idea notification group; 
   the system ends the opportunity for improvement idea upon receiving a completion or deletion of the opportunity for improvement idea and notifies the idea notification group.   
     
     
         15 . The system in  claim 14  wherein the responsible party is chosen by the idea originator. 
     
     
         16 . The system in  claim 14 . wherein the responsible party is more than one person. 
     
     
         17 . The system in  claim 14  wherein the responsible party is selected by business rules. 
     
     
         18 . The system in  claim 14  wherein one member of the responsible party can accept or assign the opportunity for improvement idea to a new responsible party. 
     
     
         19 . The system in  claim 14  wherein the idea notification group is selected by the idea originator. 
     
     
         20 . The system in  claim 14  wherein the acceptance from secondary responsible party member for each individual task notification is sent to the acceptance member of the responsible party. 
     
     
         21 . The system in  claim 14  wherein the completion from secondary responsible party member for each individual task notification is sent to the acceptance member of the responsible party. 
     
     
         22 . A system for processing ideas of opportunities for improvement comprising:
 a network receives a group challenge from a challenge creator comprising:
 a description of the challenge to create more opportunity for improvement ideas; 
 an incentive for creating opportunities for improvement ideas; 
 a designated group from the organizational hierarchy for receiving the group challenge; 
 sends notification to the designated group; 
 sends award to members of the group designated by the challenge creator; 
   a network receiving an opportunity for improvement idea and related data of the identification and a description of the opportunity for improvement idea from the originator;   the system receives a group generated hierarchy;   the system defines an idea notification group comprising the idea originator and all responsible parties based on the hierarchy;   the system receives an indication of a responsible party based on the hierarchy and the idea notification group is sent a notification;   the system receives acceptance of responsibility for the opportunity for improvement idea and the system updates the idea notification group with a notification;   the system ends the opportunity for improvement idea upon receiving completion or deletion of the opportunity for improvement idea and the idea notification group is sent notification of completion or deletion.   
     
     
         23 . The system in  claim 12  wherein the network sends the award to the idea originator upon receiving completion. 
     
     
         24 . A method for generating performance information on opportunities for improvement ideas, the method comprising:
 a quality for improvement idea server;   a calendaring module for incorporating progress of opportunity for improvement ideas and implementation results;   a network receiving opportunity for improvement ideas from an idea originators;   the opportunity for improvement ideas sent to responsible parties based on an organization developed hierarchy;   a responsible party completing and implementing each of the opportunity for improvement ideas;   the system receives completion report for each opportunity for improvement idea;   the system receives financial and time transformations based on the implementation of each opportunity for improvement idea;   the system reports financial impact of implementation of opportunity for improvement ideas for the organization and for each department of the hierarchy and adjusts results with calendaring module for impact with respect to timelines.   
     
     
         25 . The system in  claim 24  wherein the financial impact of implementation includes results generated for challenge sequences.